Position Group Breakdown 2021: Linebackers
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June 11, 2021
by Steve Thomas
This is the fifth column of our 2021 Position Group Breakdown series. Here are the prior installments:
This week, we’re going to take a look at Washington’s linebacker group.
Departures
Thomas Davis (retirement)
Mychal Kendricks (free agent)
Kevin Pierre-Louis (Texans)
Arrivals
Jamin Davis
Returning players
The linebacker group has undergone a major transformation since last season, with the team spending its first round pick on Jamin Davis and letting 2020 starter Kevin Pierre- Louis depart in free agency, and bringing in a number of depth candidates in free agency. The Redskins Washington isn’t done rebuilding this group, but tremendous strides have been made in the past two seasons to try to turn a giant weakness into a strength. Of note, several of these players were backups with Rivera in Carolina. We’ll start our look at linebackers with team’s potential starters.
Starters
Jamin Davis (6’3” / 234) was the 19th overall pick out of the University of Kentucky. He spent 4 years at Kentucky, redshirting his freshman year, and played 25 games between 2018 and 2020, with a total of 144 tackles, including 66 solo and 5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and 5 interceptions. In 2020, he played 10 games and made 102 tackles, including 48 solo and 4 for loss, 1.5 sacks, and 3 interceptions. Davis had an extremely impressive pro day, running the 40 yard dash in unofficial times of 4.41 and 4.37 seconds, and jumping 42” in the vertical leap and 11’0” in the standing broad jump, which are all “off the charts” level measurements for a linebacker. His obvious strengths are his combination of size and athleticism, which made him a frequent impact player in college. Davis is known to have quality coverage and ball skills, and scouts project him to be best as a weakside linebacker in a 4 – 3 system. His principal weakness is a lack of collegiate playing time and experience – Davis did not start until his senior year and was not a major name in pre-draft talk until his pro day. It’s a bit unclear at this point exactly what role Ron Rivera and Jack Del Rio intend him to play early in his career. The only thing that’s assured is that he will be a three down player with responsibilities in both the run and in pass protection. My initial, instant reaction on draft day was that Davis was a weakside linebacker because of his athleticism. That may be true for now, but considering his skillset and the price the team paid for him, it wouldn’t surprise me if his long-term destiny is in the middle as the team’s defensive playcaller once he gains experience in the NFL game.
Bostic (6’1” / 245) is Washington’s current starting middle linebacker. He was a second round pick out of the University of Florida by the Chicago Bears in 2013. In total, he’s played 102 games, with 77 starts, and has 537 total tackles, including 325 solo and 29 for loss, plus 9.5 sacks and 3 interceptions. Bostic spent his first two seasons with the Bears, but was traded to New England early in the 2015 season. The Patriots then traded him to the Lions in the 2016 offseason. Bostic moved to the Indianapolis Colts for 2017 on a one year contract. He signed a two year deal with the Steelers in the 2018 offseason, but was cut shortly after the 2019 draft. Bostic was signed by Washington’s former regime shortly after Reuben Foster’s knee injury. He signed a two year extension last March. Bostic became the starter in the middle following the team’s switch to a base 4 – 3 system. Last year, he played 16 games, starting 15, and made 118 total tackles, including 61 solo and 6 for loss, 6 sacks, and 1 interception. Bostic is the starter in the middle largely because of his experience – he’s the only player in the position group who been an NFL starter for any significant length of time. In that respect, he’s the starter by default more than anything else. He’s at least a league average starter who is adequate in his role but probably doesn’t bring to the table any sort of elite performance in any one particular area. Bostic’s contract expires at the end of this season, and at age thirty, it’s possible that he doesn’t return in 2022.
Holcomb (6’1” / 231) was drafted by Washington in the fifth round of the 2019 draft out of the University of North Carolina, where he played 43 games in four seasons. Holcomb was highly productive during his collegiate years, with a total of 327 tackles, including 171 solo and 156 assisted tackles, and 2.5 sacks. In 2018, he made 104 tackles, with 59 solo and 45 assisted tackles. He was the defensive signal caller for the Tar Heels. Holcomb did not attend the NFL Combine, but at the North Carolina pro day ran the 40 yard dash in 4.51 seconds, jumped 11’0” in the standing broad jump, and ran the 20 yard shuttle in 4.14 seconds and the 3 cone drill in 6.77 seconds. Since he’s been with Washington, Holcomb has played in 27 games, starting 25, and has a total of 177 tackles, including 119 solo and 12 for loss, 3.5 sacks, and 1 interception. Last season, he only played 11 games due to injury, starting 10, with 72 total tackles, including 45 solo and 6 for loss, plus 2.5 sacks and 1 interception. Holcomb is obviously a revelation as a fifth round pick, which is a point in the draft at which NFL starters are rare. He’s a natural strongside linebacker, as his talents lie more in run defense than on the backside in coverage. Holcomb appears to be ingrained on the strongside this year, but as is the case with Davis, it’s possible that he ends up as the middle linebacker at some point. It’s also not beyond the realm of possible that he plays on the weakside on non-passing downs.
Backup candidates
David Mayo (6’2” / 240) was a 2015 fifth round draft pick by Ron Rivera’s Panthers from Texas St. Mayo is has average athleticism by NFL linebacker standards – at the Texas St. pro day, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.74 seconds, jumped 34.5” inches in the vertical leap and 9’5” in the standing broad jump, and did 24 bench press reps. Mayo stayed with the Panthers through the 2018 season. He signed a two year contract with the San Francisco 49ers in the 2019 offseason but was released at the end of training camp that year. Mayo was signed by the New York Giants two days later, and he stayed with the Giants until being released this past March due to the Giants’ salary cap woes. Washington signed him to a one year, $990,000 contract two weeks later. In total, Mayo has played in 86 games, with 19 starts, and has a total of 173 tackles, including 109 solo and 8 for loss, plus 2 sacks. Mayo was a weakside inside linebacker in the Giants’ base 3 – 4 system. One thing to understand about Mayo is that he is far more effective against the run than he is in coverage. That said, he’s one of the few proven veteran linebackers on this roster beyond Bostic and Holcomb. Therefore, he’s most likely a two down player who will be the backup to Washington’s starting middle linebacker, and possibly on the strong side as well.
Khaleke Hudson (5’11” / 224) was a fifth round pick by Washington last year. He played a total of 44 games in four years at Michigan, with 225 tackles, including 114 solo tackles and 23 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, and 2 interceptions. In 2019, Hudson played 13 games, making 101 tackles, including 45 solo and 3 tackles for loss. He earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors in 2017 and Second Team All-Big Ten Honors in 2019. At the NFL Combine, Hudson ran the 40 yard dash in 4.56 seconds, did an impressive 30 reps on the bench press, and jumped 33 inches in the vertical leap and 10’0” in the standing broad jump. In his rookie season last year, Hudson was active for all 16 games, starting 2, and had 14 total tackles, including 7 solo and 2 for loss. Hudson is more of a tweener, linebacker / safety hybrid, having played in Michigan’s “Viper” role, which is essentially an in-the-box safety / linebacker combo. In some respects, he’s in the same mold as Landon Collins. I expect Hudson to be a key special teamer and perhaps be able to carve out a role in nickel or dime situations rather than in the team’s base 4 – 3.
Jared Norris (6’1” / 240) is a 2016 undrafted free agent from the University of Utah who was originally signed by Ron Rivera’s Carolina Panthers. Norris doesn’t have elite athletic measurables, having run the 40 yard dash in 4.80 seconds and jumping 29.5” in the vertical leap and 9’6” in the standing broad jump at the 2016 NFL Combine. In his four NFL seasons, he’s been active for 39 games, with no starts, and has made 14 tackles, including 11 solo. The Panthers waived Norris in August, 2019, and was signed by Washington in February, 2020. Norris was put on the practice squad to start the 2020 season, but was elevated to the active roster for games days in weeks 2 and 3, then was signed to the active roster in early October. He was re-signed to a one year, $1.1M contract with $137,500 guaranteed this offseason. Norris’ role on this team is tough to defined since we’ve barely seen him play. He was viewed by analysts as a weakside linebacker coming out of college, but the fact that the team gave him some guaranteed money shows that the coaching staff has a fairly high opinion of him. Given the status of the linebacker group, I think Norris will be given a chance to grab the backup weakside spot behind Jamin Davis.
Joe Walker (6’2” / 236) was a 2016 seventh round pick by the Philadelphia Eagles from the University of Oregon. He has good athleticism by NFL linebacker standards. He ran the 40 yard dash in 4.60 seconds, jumped 37 inches in the vertical leap and 10’4” in the standing broad jump, and did 24 bench press reps at 225 pounds at Oregon’s pro day. Walker tore his ACL in a preseason game in 2016 and missed his entire rookie season as a result. He earned a spot on Philadelphia’s active roster in 2017, but suffered a neck injury in week 12 and ended up back on injured reserve. The Eagles waived him at the start of the 2018 season, and he signed to the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad shortly thereafter. Walker signed with the 49ers for the 2020 season, then bounced back and forth between the active roster and the practice squad, then caught the China Virus in November. In total, Walker has played in 54 games, with 14 starts, and has made 88 tackles, including 57 solo and 5 for loss. In 2020, he was active for 12 games and made 6 tackles. Walker was an inside linebacker in the Cardinals’ base 3 – 4 system. His contract with Washington is for one year and $990,000, with no guaranteed money. I view Walker as another candidate for the backup middle linebacker job.
Kunaszyk (6’3” / 236) was a 2019 undrafted free agent from the University of California who was originally signed by Rivera’s Carolina Panthers. Kunaszyk didn’t score well on athletic measurables coming out of college, running the 40 yard dash in 4.82 seconds, jumping 33 inches in the vertical leap and 9’7” in the standing broad jump, plus 16 reps at the bench press at his pro day. In his NFL career, he’s played in a total of 15 games in two years, with 10 tackles. Nearly all of Kunaszyk’s active game snaps have come on special teams, which means that he has a chance to make the roster here in Washington in that same role.
Phillips (6’0” / 235) was a 2019 undrafted free agent from Oklahoma St. who was originally signed by the Dallas Cowboys. Phillips was a team captain and middle linebacker in college. He was waived by Dallas at the end of the 2019 training camp, but caught on with the then-Oakland Raiders, starting out on the practice squad before being promoted to the active roster in late September. His season came to an end in October, 2019, though, when he suffered a knee injury and was subsequently waived with an injury settlement. Oakland then re-signed him in May, 2020, before waiving him again in September. Walker signed to Washington’s practice squad in late November. In total, he has played in 4 regular season games, all in 2019, and made 7 tackles. Phillips is a practice squad candidate.
Predictions
One thing to note is that one or both of 2021 draft picks Shaka Toney and William Bradley-King could possibly end up as linebackers, as both of them have the physical profile for the position. Toney is more of a pass rushing specialist, so Bradley-King may be the more likely candidate.
Washington kept 8 linebackers last season in Rivera’s first year with the team, which was the team’s first year back in a base 4 – 3. Assuming they keep 8 again this season, the roster locks are Bostic, Holcomb, and Davis. Hudson may not be a “lock”, but as a 2020 fifth round pick, it’s very likely that he gets another year. Mayo also is a good bet to make the roster by virtue of his NFL experience, which is something that the linebacker group as a lacks behind the starters. If neither Toney nor Bradley-King are turned into linebackers, that leaves Kunaszyk, Norris, Phillips, and Walker to fight for 3 remaining spots. Washington will probably keep at leas one linebacker on the practice squad, so it’s possible that all 9 of the linebackers currently on the roster remain with the team for the 2021 season.